US sanctions & protectionism strengthen bonds between Russia and China

Energy ties between China and Russia will see deeper development as the neighboring countries are planning to jointly work on the Arctic shelf projects, according to Igor Sechin, CEO of Russia’s biggest oil company Rosneft.

“New growth points in Russian-Chinese cooperation could be joint development of the oil and gas resources on the shelves of the Arctic and Russia’s Far East, as well as development of navigation along the Northern Sea Route,” Sechin said at the first Russian-Chinese Energy Forum in Beijing.

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The project, aimed at creating a major electrical power complex in the Far East region, looks promising, according to the Rosneft chief. The complex, which will reportedly be powered by coal and renewable energy, will mainly export energy to China.

“We may also boost cooperation in petrochemicals and gas processing,” Sechin said. “We see synergies from these interactions, Chinese banking services are more in demand, there is the opportunity to build vertically integrated networks and we have opportunities to work together in other countries.”

Over the past years, Moscow and Beijing have significantly increased energy cooperation, as energy-rich Russia has been using its proximity to China to reach the Asian nation’s growing market.

Moreover, both countries have found themselves in the middle of geo-political and trade tensions instigated by Washington. Numerous US sanctions against Russia, as well as the current trade spat between Washington and Beijing have forced China and Russia to further boost their partnership.

“Amid the politics of unilateral action and trade protectionism, strengthening Russia-China energy cooperation is extremely important for jointly securing energy security and shaping an open world economy,” China’s First Deputy Prime Minister Han Zheng said.

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